Feature: Softball Group Sued

Not Gay Enough?

Lawsuit Against NAGAAA Alleges Softball Organization Doesn’t Follow Own Rules

Thumbnail for NAGAAA Lawsuit article If you’ve even been to a gay softball tournament in your life, then you know that challenges and protests are pretty routine. When this occurs, it is usually one team protesting another team for being “too good.” One or more of their players, they argue, should be rated higher and, thus, shouldn’t be playing for his or her team. In Seattle in 2008, however, the situation that had everyone talking was not about the ratings of certain players , but rather their sexual orientation.

It was the Gay Softball World Series, where over 150 teams had gathered to contest championships in four divisions – A, B, C and D. The annual tournament is produced by the North American Gay Amateur Athletic Alliance, which has been operating since 1977, and draws from 37 leagues across the continent, and nearly 700 teams. It’s the best of the best among gay softball teams.

Just how gay these teams have to be, on the other hand, is the issue that led to the protest. The D2 team from San Francisco was stripped of its second-place finish when it was determined by league officials that they had used more than two heterosexual players, which is the limit NAGAAA had previously set forth in its rulebook. The ruling has had a lasting impact, resulting not only in ongoing debates about the necessity of the rule, but also a recently filed lawsuit on behalf of the three men in question. Complicating matters is the fact that the National Center for Lesbian Rights has joined the law firm of K&L Gates on behalf of the plaintiffs. The lawsuit was filed April 20 in the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington, and accuses the alliance of violating Washington state laws barring discrimination.

The three plaintiffs — Steven Apilado, LaRon Charles and Jon Russ — maintain now, as they did then, that they are all bisexual, and should not be disqualified based on NAGAAA’s rule, which makes no mention of bisexual players. The men are asking for $75,000 each for emotional distress. They're also seeking to invalidate the alliance's findings on the men's sexual orientations and to reinstate D2’s second-place World Series finish.

Melanie Rowen, staff attorney at NCLR, told Compete that NAGAAA is not playing by its own rules. She argues that concluding that the men were “nongay” is not in compliance with the organization’s “Softball Code,” which only specifies the number of heterosexual players allowed per team, not bisexual players. Furthermore, she says the organization’s general policy of nondiscrimination is in conflict with the cap on heterosexual players.

Although NAGAAA declined to be interviewed for this story, saying they are unable to discuss it while litigation is pending, their attorney spoke to the Seattle Times after the lawsuit was filed. Beth Allen told the Times the lawsuit is unwarranted and that the three plaintiffs “were not discriminated against in any unlawful manner.” She added that the alliance is a private organization and, as such, can determine its membership based on its goals.
“They are not a private organization; they hold themselves out there as an organization where anyone can come play softball,” said Rowen, who points out that public accommodations laws in Washington state are in effect since NAGAAA used public facilities.

Making matters worse in this entire scenario is the method by which the plaintiffs allege they were treated by NAGAAA that week in 2008. According to their statements, each was called into a conference room in front of approximately 30 people, and was grilled about their sexual histories and practices.
“Nobody should have to be led into a room to explain their private life in order to determine if they should be able to play with your group,” stated Rowen, who added that many of the people present in the room “did not need to be there.”
According to Rowen: “They were asking ‘Are you predominantly attracted to men or are you predominantly attracted to women?’ and ‘Are you dating someone now?’ One player said ‘Can’t I be attracted to both? I’m bisexual.’”
Allegedly, one person in the room responded, “This is the gay world series, not the bisexual world series.” It is not known if the person who issued that response was a member of the panel or another bystander in the room.

NCLR purports that, in addition to the humiliation of being questioned on their sexual orientation, the three men may also have been the victims of underlying racism. According to Rowen, five D2 players were questioned about their sexual orientation that day. Of the three voted to be “nongay” two are African-American and one is African-American and Filipino. The others who were questioned were white. Rowen added that it was a “predominantly white jury.” Apilado, Charles and Russ say the experience was humiliating and degrading.

“When you play softball, you never expect for anyone to corner you and ask you personal questions about who you are and what you do,” said Charles. “It was emotional for me as a coach to go in there and not only get grilled, but watch my team be put in this situation. This had me angry, had me in tears, contemplating whether I even want to be part of the league anymore after being in it since 1999. The rationale that straight players should be limited on a team because they are better athletes is wrong, and it's insulting to the many strong LGBT athletes of today. A player is a player.”
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“This case shows that bisexual people are an integral part of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community. The San Francisco team was truly diverse and welcomed bisexual, gay, and straight players, and they saw each other as not just teammates, but family,” said NCLR Sports Project Director Helen Carroll. “We all deserve to be treated with respect no matter what part of the ‘LGBT’ we are. It damages our community to conduct witch hunts and to exclude people from playing in a sports league for not being ‘gay enough.’ We wouldn’t accept this kind of treatment from a non-LGBT sports organization and we shouldn’t do it to ourselves.”

That sentiment is echoed by some players and others in the community who think NAGAAA’s rule is outdated, unnecessary and discriminatory.
“Politically, this is a disaster for the gay community,” said Nathan Wade, who has played with Phoenix’s Cactus Cities Softball League for over 10 years. “We can march and protest and call as much attention as we want to against policies that discriminate against us, and we are handing those who don't like us a golden egg – ‘So, you want us to include you, but it doesn't go the other way?’ The bottom line is that there is no way that it doesn't make the gay community look hypocritical. Plus, what does this say to straight allies? Should they be supportive of us even if we don't return the consideration?”

Wade, who previously sat on his league’s board, says he has been opposed to the policy for some time now, and wishes his league would take a stand against the rule. In addition to “destroying more bridges than it builds,” Wade calls the rule a classic example of “self-loathing.”

David Dupuy, a non-player from Dallas, reacted to this story by calling it “ridiculous.” Dupuy, who plays with his local gay bowling league, says it is unfortunate that he has seen this time and time again in the gay community.
“How can we, the gay community, demand and expect nondiscrimination based on sexual orientation and not provide the same to the rest of society? A lot of our protests and statements are based on acceptance of who we are – people, not who we are labeled as.”

But not everyone thinks the issue is black-and-white. There are shades of gray, says Manuel Mejias of Phoenix’s Amsterdam Knights. Mejias says his team is like most – divided on this issue. While many sympathize with the plaintiffs, others support NAGAAA in its attempts to create a fair playing environment.
“You abide by the rules when you go to a tournament,” Mejias said, questioning whether or not the men were truly bisexual.
In conversations with a number of softball players who were present at the Seattle series, it is clear that many believe the men are, in fact, straight, and were making a mockery of the rule. Mejias and others say it is actually very common for teams to have more than two heterosexual players, but it is rare that those teams get challenged.
“I don’t protest the straight thing,” he said. “I protest ratings.”
If all the players on a team are rated properly, says Mejias, then it shouldn’t matter what their sexual orientation is.
He added: “We don’t care; we’re out there to have fun.”
Nonetheless, he stands by the rule, saying “The league was founded for a certain reason – to have a place for gay athletes to feel safe and comfortable.”

NAGAAA’S RULE REGARDING HETEROSEXUAL PLAYERS
A maximum of two Heterosexual players are permitted on a GSWS roster.
a) A team in violation of the Heterosexual player guidelines shall be subject to disciplinary action that may include but is not limited to:
1) Permanent suspension of the Heterosexual player from future GSWS and Open Division events.
2) Disqualification and forfeiture of all the offending team’s games.
3) One year’s suspension of the team’s Manager.
4) A minimum $100.00 fine imposed against the team’s Association.